Harry Potter, Trying Times
by brewman00
Summary: Harry attempts to leave Privet Drive in order to train himself, but his escape from Number 4 is thwarted. Training ensues, and Harry grows up. HarryTonks eventually. Rating for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**_In case you were curious…  I don't own any of this - characters and whatnot - it belongs to J.K. Rowling_**

For the first time in weeks, a slight smile spread across the haunted face the young man currently lying in his bed.  Harry Potter had just glanced at just glanced at his bedside clock and realized that in less than an hour it would not only be his birthday, but also time to put his well laid plan into action.  

For the past few weeks, Harry had done little else than study the movements and actions of everything and everyone around Privet Drive, as well as study a certain map.  This map was the key to everything.   Thinking back he realized the sudden stroke of genius he had during the leaving feast at Hogwarts when he created a rather crude version of the Marauder's Map.  While not showing names and exact locations, his map would show the approximate location of all people with a magical signature high enough to allow them to perform magic.  Using this, he scouted out the area and learned of the Order's security watches, keeping an eye on him, and used that information to make a shaky schedule of who was on duty, when, and where they generally stationed themselves.  

Watching him constantly only served to make Harry more bitter and distrustful towards Dumbledore; he knew that the headmaster had kept the prophecy from him for reasons he truly believed to be noble, but Harry thought otherwise, and was beginning to doubt that he was little more than a weapon, to be loaded and fired when the time was right.  Well, loaded he was, he was living on a metaphorical high, caused from anger, sorrow, and self-loathing.  For that; for the Order, mainly Dumbledore and Snape, to be the cause of these feelings, he needed to escape for this hell he was forced to call home.  

It was not long until the clock digitally turned to twelve a.m. and he opened his window to receive his annual school letter and birthday presents from his friends.  Not taking time to open them, he took all his necessities, cloak, wand, a few books, presents, and a few other odds and ends, threw them all in a ragged duffle bag he found in the closet, and strengthened his resolve.  Donning his invisibility cloak, he stealthily made his way downstairs, careful to avoid the rickety few that would alert his relatives of his escape, and out the back door.  

Once outside, he checked the map to get a better handle on Snape's location, and was rewarded with the knowledge that he was a few streets away, near Mrs. Figg's house.  There was of course no lost love between Harry and Snape.  The fact that the man hated Harry was obvious to anyone.  This, and the fact that Harry still felt Snape could have done more to help him last year, not only with Occlumency, but also when he mentioned Sirius in front of Umbridge, drove him to decide to vanish on Snape's watch – hopefully he would take the blame for Harry's disappearance. 

 So it was, that he made his way through the Dursley's back & front yard, then down the street.   Making quick time, Harry sped down the street, hoping to reach the city's small train station before his absence from Number 4 was noticed.  He knew that there were unused passenger cars at the station waiting to be used, and they would provide him an excellent place to retrieve his Firebolt (which Dumbledore had graciously given back as he was leaving Hogwarts) from his duffle bag.  He was slightly worried about one thing though.  He knew the order paced magic detectors around Surrey so it would be easier for them to sense trouble, Harry being the only magical person in the area.  Now he was worried, if only slightly, that he might not be far enough away from the neighborhood that the detectors would detect the magical connection he made with his broomstick.

It was nearing 30 minutes since he had left the house on Privet Drive and currently Harry was walking just out of sight alongside the normally busy road.  Being well lit, he could see what was happening up on the road easily, and as he came to a nice clearing, he stopped to have a drink of water from the canteen he was wearing around his neck.  While trying to be as quiet as possible while unscrewing the canteen top, he glanced in the direction he had come from, and what he saw sent chills throughout his body; he was being followed.

Up on the road, slightly behind him, he could see three figures in cloaks creeping cautiously along, their heads darting in different directions as each second passed.  Harry stared, unblinkingly, at the figures as they approached an area parallel with him that was filled with moon-light and street light, as they entered the light-flooded area, he was shocked.  Professors Dumbledore and Snape were following closely behind a third, unidentifiable witch.  Keeping his eyes trained on the three, but mainly on the witch in the lead, Harry waited.  Minutes passed like hours until, finally, something happened that brought recognition to the unknown witch; she tripped on the hem of her cloak and fell gracefully to the ground.  

Tonks, Harry thought, only she could be so clumsy.  When they began moving again, slightly ahead of Harry, he suddenly remembered something; Dumbledore can see through invisibility cloaks.  As quickly as he could, while remaining silent, Harry flattened himself to the ground and cocked his head to the left so that he could see if they were looking or coming his way.  Thankfully, they appeared to have missed him and they continued on down the road, all the time looking around in an almost paranoid fashion.  

Once standing, he looked around and noticed two figures in the distance, making their way along the road while surveying the opposite side.  Using this opportunity, he ran as fast as he could while still retaining as much silence as possible, hoping to reach the train station before being spotted.  As luck would have it, he reached the abandoned cars without being seen, and sat down, leaning against the large steel wheel of one to catch his breath. Breathing heavily, he failed to notice the soft footfalls indicating an approaching person until it was too late.  After a slight crash and some choice words, Harry leapt to his feet, only to come face to face with Tonks, who was, as usual, displaying a large smile. 

"Wotcher, Harry" she said brightly, as if meeting in a train yard with a runaway was an everyday occurrence for her.

Harry's face fell immediately, and with sorrow in his voice he replied, "'Lo, Tonks."  

Tonks, knowing that there was obviously something bothering Harry, sat down next to him before responding. 

 "Something wrong Harry?" She asked sincerely, something Harry was able to pick up on.

"Everything is wrong" he answered solemnly. 

After a brief pause, in which he gathered his thoughts and organized them, he continued, albeit with a slightly shaky voice.  "I just have to get away.  It's my fault that so many people have been hurt.  Cedric died first, then Sirius; my friends were injured then too. Everyone around me is constantly in danger…."  He trailed off for a moment, just staring at the sky, just as Tonks was about to respond, he began again, abruptly.  "Two years ago I made a decision – that one decision, one choice, that one…. weakness is the cause of all this.  It almost seems as though I am doomed to make mistakes.  Since that night two years ago, I have constantly made poor choices, and someone always gets hurt, sometimes killed.  Professor Dumbledore may believe that I have made the right choices, but I don't!  He may believe that my ability to love is my greatest strength, but it is also my greatest weakness – I can't do what is expected of me."  Again he trailed off, this time looking down instead of up, secretly wishing that the world would swallow him up and allow fate to bestow his burden on another.

Tonks was listening calmly, though somewhat confused.  What choice, she thought, and what is expected of him?  She voiced these thoughts and after a few moments of silence, he explained.

"Near the end of my third year, when I found out about Sirius being innocent in the Shrieking Shack, he and Remus wanted to kill Wormtail" he began, pure hatred and venom laced around the last word.  Seeing her confusion he added, "Peter Pettigrew.  As you know, he was, is, the one that betrayed my parents Fidelus to Voldemort.  Well, Remus and Sirius wanted to kill him, and as much as I knew he deserved it, I couldn't allow it to happen.  I couldn't allow my fathers two best friends to become murderers.  Well, that night he escaped.  It was a full moon and Remus transformed – Sirius immediately changed to his animagus form to protect us, and in the mix, Wormtail got away.  That night, when he escaped Hogwarts, not only was my chance at a life living with my godfather taken, but so was my chance for a future.  You know that it was he who was responsible for Voldemort's rebirth.  That was my first bad choice, had it not been for that, Cedric would still be alive, and for that I am sorry."  Harry, good as he was at hiding his emotions, could no longer keep them bottled up, and silent tears fell from his eyes and ran down his face.  

Tonks on the other hand wasn't sure what to say.  No one had ever told her of the night in the Shrieking Shack, and she assumed the only ones who really knew were those present and Dumbledore.  She was brought out of her thoughts as Harry began to speak again.

"Now Professor Dumbledore tells me that I am the only one that can kill Voldemort.  'Neither can live while the other survives, for either must die at the hands of the other'.  Does that mean that only he can kill me?  How can I kill Voldemort?  Even if I could I don't know if I would, I was unable to kill the man responsible for my parents' deaths, so how could I kill another person, even if he is evil?  Also, if I do kill him, does that mean that I am immortal, or if I lose, is he?  It's just too much"

Tonks was thunderstruck.  She never knew any of this, Dumbledore hadn't told anyone else, and she could see exactly where Harry was coming from.  Of course he would see it as his fault that Cedric and Sirius had died, who wouldn't.  She also didn't know the details of the prophecy, but had figured that Harry was involved somehow.  After hearing all Harry had been through and seen, she was amazed that he was still as sane and normal, figuratively, as he was; much less alive.  She understood, or so she thought…

"Harry," she said softly after a few moments of silence, "I won't say I know how you feel.  I couldn't even begin to fathom it because honestly, I have never been through anything even remotely similar, but I do understand why your choices make you feel the way you do.  I would feel the same.  I never knew most of what you just told me, and I don't think Dumbledore ever told anyone either, but I will say that if he thinks you made the right choice we should trust in that – he knows much more than he lets on –"

She was interrupted by Harry "He told me that after what happened in the Department of Mysteries that he made a mistake by not telling me soon about the prophecy."

"That may be," began Tonks "but only time will tell on this one.  I know right now it seems impossible that stopping Peter from being killed was the right choice – we will just have to see.  Given all that, I don't think that running away from your problems will help"

Here Harry seemed to tense up and actually get upset.

"I'm not running away from my problems, I'm running away from those few who have shown me compassion, those who I care about, trying to offer them a hope for a better tomorrow.  He wants me dead, and I him.  Only I don't know how, or even if, I can do it.  I am running off to train myself.  Voldemort surely knows what I am taught in school and no one seems to be in any rush to train me for what only I can accomplish.  Quite the opposite really; I am sheltered in a house, surrounded by people who hate my every being.  When not there I am being told how to live my life by the headmaster – I have no choices anymore, they are made for me.  I can never really be sure if those I care for really care about me, or just about some prophecy which involves me in some way and want to keep me alive long enough to kill Voldemort, then cast me aside like a used casing; spent.  For once I am making a decision, not about school, or some inane activity, but about my life, and barely an hour after leaving you, Dumbledore and Snape are out looking for me – making sure I don't do something foolish, like get myself killed.  But is that because you really care about me, the person, or me, the boy in the prophecy?"  

He finished, trembling with rage.  He knew that Tonks was only following orders and probably did care about him, Harry, but before she had a chance to speak he went on in a voice so calm and cold, it actually frightened her a bit.

"I am going away tonight and no one, I mean no one, will stop me.  If you do truly care about me, Harry, then you will please not try to stop me."

A little taken aback, Tonks looked into his eyes and could see he was entirely serious.  She did care for him, some out of pity for what he had been through, some out of respect, but mostly for what she had heard about him and what she was now seeing.  She finally understood, he would sacrifice everything in hopes of saving a few lives; he knew what he had to do and had thought everything through.  And, of course, she couldn't deny that his life was lived for him – he was right about a search party being sent out only minutes after he left Number 4.  Now she was faced with a dilemma, she did want to allow him to make his own choices but she also wanted him to be safe.  Then again, she wasn't big on the idea of defying Dumbledore's orders either.  She asked Harry for a few minutes, to which he grudgingly agreed, and she pondered her options, of which there were few.  

After several minutes deep in thought, and quite a few loud sighs from Harry, she formed a plan in her mind.  Not a great plan, but a plan nonetheless.  She looked straight into Harry's eyes and spoke. 

"Harry, I have an idea.  I would like to ask you to wait here for 15 more minutes, and if I am not back by then you may go; I give you my word I will not tell anyone where you are.  Okay?"  

Harry thought this seemed reasonable enough, but didn't see why he had to wait for 15 minutes.  Then again, he had already waited for over a month, so what's 15 minutes more.  He nodded his head in agreement, to which Tonks smiled brightly then with a 'crack' she was gone, only to reappear moments later and Number 12 Grimwauld Place, Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix.


	2. Chapter 2

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**_ In case you were curious…  I don't own any of this - characters and whatnot - it belongs to J.K. Rowling. _**

* * *

As soon as she arrived in headquarters and made her way to the area surrounding the kitchen, which is where most of the commotion was, she saw what could only be described as pandemonium.  Witches and wizards were running back and forth shouting out ideas and possible locations they might find Harry.  She was drawn back to what Harry had said about them caring for the real him, or the boy in the prophecy, and a sad smile found its way to her face.  Pushing these thoughts aside, she quickly found Dumbledore in the sitting room, sitting with his pressed together in a ball of sorts, apparently lost in thought.

"Professor Dumbledore," she said softly, but it was enough to rouse the aged wizard out of his thoughts.

"Yes Ms. Tonks?"  He replied, defeat showing in his voice, before looking up and seeing the awkward smile on her face.

"I have found and spoken with Harry" She told him lightly.

Dumbledore was immediately on his feet and made his way to the adjacent room, where he used his commanding voice and ordered for silence, before turning back to Tonks, who had followed.

"Where is he?"  The old wizard inquired.  

These three simple words had an amazing impact on the other occupants of the room.  Molly Weasley, who had been crying, as well as some others, stopped the falling tears; a few people, such as Remus Lupin and Kingsley Shacklebolt had some color return to their faces, and a few who Tonks despised afterwards, said things such as 'Thank goodness, what would we have done if anything happened.'  Tonks, after a few moments of silence, shocked everyone with her response.

"I can't tell you, sir."

By the look on their faces, this was obviously not the Order had expected to hear, and some members gave shouts of outrage.  Dumbledore however, just calmly asked the question on everyone's mind.

"Why not Ms. Tonks?"

"Because I gave him my word sir; he is safe now and wants to go away for a while." 

More protests could be heard before Dumbledore silenced them with his next statement.  "I am afraid I can't allow that" he told her sternly.

"Well sir, I told him I would be back in 15 minutes, which leaves me about 10.  He could leave after that time and I daresay you wouldn't find him – he did, after all, see you, Severus, and I searching for him earlier."  She trailed off a moment before continuing.  "He explained several things to me before I cam, some that others may be interested to hear – about some choices he made about a 'Wormtail.'  He also mentioned a few other things a bit more personal, however, after arriving here a few minutes ago I think his thoughts are pretty accurate."  Tonks finished off, glaring at several of the Order members.

"What do you propose?  You are the one who spoke with him and knows what he is feeling."  Dumbledore asked her calmly, though he was still looking at her intently.

"He feels as he should," she began, causing a few confused looks in her direction.  She dismissed this and continued.  "I would ask that you allow me to go with him, wherever that may be – he will go either way."

"Tonks," Dumbledore began quite sternly, "I am afraid that I can not allow you to accompany him, and furthermore, I insist you tell me where he is; it is imperative that he return to safety".  

After hearing this, Tonks wore a mask of disappointment, but taking a deep breath and strengthening her resolve, she replied.

"Sir, I mean you no disrespect, but Harry told me you made, and admitted to, a mistake in the past concerning him, and I am sorry, but I will not tell you where he is."  

She then took of a necklace, one that held a small medallion with a Phoenix engraving in the center, and handed it to Dumbledore, then continued speaking.

"You just made another mistake.  I will let you know when we will return." And with that, she disappeared.

Her first stop was her flat, where she quickly gathered her clothes and broom and put it all in a large duffle bag, before apparating a few more places at random before returning to the train yard, and Harry.

When she arrived at the train yard Harry was mildly surprised to see her carrying a bag and broomstick with her, but before he had a chance to voice his surprise, she told him to mount his broom so they could get going.  Harry, who had taken his broom out while she was gone, looked at her with bewilderment for a moment before mounting his broom and following her lead.

Since it was still late at night, they had a few hours before the sun would begin to rise.  They used their time to their advantage, and finally, nearly 3 hours later, set down in a small wooded area just south of Scotland – _hide in plain sight_ Tonks had said.  As soon as they were on the ground, Harry began his questioning.

"What was that all about?  Were you being followed?" He asked.

Tonks smiled slightly before speaking. "That was us getting away from Surrey, where some members of the Order are still searching for you.  Whether or not we were being followed; I don't know, but better safe than sorry."  

Tonks moved to sit on a patch of grass, and Harry followed her lead before speaking.

"And why are you carrying a bag with you?" He asked, honestly not realizing that she was going with him, wherever.

Tonks repositioned herself so she was facing Harry before speaking again.

"Harry, before I begin to tell you everything, will you let me finish - before asking questions?"

He nodded, and allowed her to continue.

"Ok, good.  I have my bag with me because I am going to go with you, wherever that is.  When I asked you to wait, I went to Order headquarters and told Dumbledore that I had found you and that you were planning to leave.  He, of course, wanted to know where you were, but I refused to tell him.  Then I asked him if I could go with you, to which he also refused."

She paused for a moment, but as Harry remained silent, she went on.

"I told him that you told me a few things, about some choices the two of you had made in the past – nothing personal - "  she added after seeing his face tighten "I also told him you were tired of having your life lived for you.  After that I mentioned that you told me a few more personal things that are yours alone to share, if and when you decide, but after arriving there, I thought your thoughts were pretty close to the truth; this is when he insisted to know your location.  Finally, I told him that he had before, and was now making a mistake; I handed in my order medallion, which can be used to track and contact me, and left."

Harry was looking at her with a mixture of shock and awe, but this quickly changed to something akin to sadness as he thought about her quitting because of him.  Tonks, after taking a moment to catch her breath, continued, hoping to stop Harry from falling into whatever sadness was threatening him.  

"After I left headquarters, I went to my flat to grab a few things, apparated a few random places in case I was followed, met you again, and here we are."  She finished brightly, and apparently pleased with her choice.

Inside, Harry was glad that she wanted to come with him, not only could she help him with the things he wanted to learn, but she was also great company – and after what she had just told him, he was pretty sure he could trust her.  Tonks, however, was unsure about what Harry was feeling, so she was watching his face intently, looking for anything that would let her know what he was thinking, or how he felt. 

"Why did you want to come?"  Harry asked her bluntly, while also watching her closely.

Successfully startled by the abruptness of the question, and the look he was giving her, Tonks looked right back at him before answering.

"Harry," she said softly, "I don't doubt that you are right about how some people see you –  the boy in the prophecy, but that is not how I see you.  I like to think I see you for whom and what you really are, though I am still learning that.  I chose to come with you for a few reasons; to help you – I assume you are leaving the country so you can learn and practice magic like you said, also, to help keep you  safe – not because I think of you as the last hope we have left, and lastly, for good company.  I think it would do well for you to have a friend around, and that is what I would like to be – a friend of yours."

Harry thought this seemed nice, and could tell she was honest and sincere in her story and plans, as well as her wish to become friends.  The only x-factor was whether or not she would agree to help teach him what _he planned on learning, and agree to his choice of destination.  Still a little dumb-struck by all she had said and done, he merely nodded his head in agreement, to which she smiled in return; then spoke again._

"So, have you figured out where we are going yet?"  She asked, nonchalantly.

"Well, I did some research, and thinking, and decided it would be best to stay clear of areas with a big concentration of magical people.  I figure the less magical people around, the less chance there will be of me being recognized, or Voldemort and the Order figuring out where I am. I decided that Prague, or somewhere near there, in the Czech Republic, would be the best place, since most witches and wizards fled the area while it was under communist rule and have yet to return.  Also, it is a pretty small country, so if for some reason we do need to move around, we shouldn't draw to much attention to ourselves.  There are also a lot of tourists there year-round, so we won't look out of place.  I was planning on flying there a little each night since I don't have a passport, and one would be needed at the border of the Czech Republic.  If my calculations are right, we should be able to reach it in two nights of flying."  

He paused for a moment before continuing, albeit very hesitantly.

"So – do you, uh, still want to go?"  He asked hopefully.

"Yes, I do.  I also think that another advantage of being there would be the news, or lack there of.  Without you having daily reports of Voldemort, you should be able to concentrate fully, and stay focused, on your training."

Looking up, Harry noticed that the sun was just beginning to break into the horizon, reminding him of the long and eventful night that had just passed.  It was quite a sight for him to see, the early morning sky, though he didn't have time to relish in the beauty many spoke of; he was interrupted by Tonks.

"Well, I say it's about time for breakfast, then we need to find a place to stay – what do you say Harry?"

Still slightly lost in the moment, he managed to get out, "Uh… yeah, breakfast…. That sounds good."

After the two of them had a quick breakfast, they found a small hotel, where they each got a room and rested for a while before they would head off that evening.  Around 8 p.m. Tonks went to get Harry, and after he emerged, from his room the two of them made their way to the clearing they had arrived at that morning.  Quickly discussing the best route to take, they flew off in the direction Holland, which they reached fairly quickly – all things considered.  Stopping there for the evening, they quickly found a bus that would take them to Frankfurt, Germany.  Harry only obliged after Tonks had conjured a crude passport for each of them, and the fact that, much as he loved flying, he was dead tired from it.  

After purchasing tickets from Rotterdam to Frankfurt, they boarded the bus, and decided it would be best to try to get a little sleep, so in shifts of 2 hours, they slept, allowing for each of them one shift, and then a little time after to arrive.  Arriving in Frankfurt, they spent the majority of the time just looking around, taking in the few sights and checking out the many shops near the train station Tonks drug him to, having been there previously, until it was nearing time to leave.  

After a quick dinner they, once again, boarded a train to Dresden, where they would de-board and fly the rest of the way – mostly in fear of the off chance their bags could be search; their passports not looking at all official.  

It was several hours later, when they arrived in Dresden and the sun had set not more than a few hours previously, and they mounted their brooms to fly over the border and into unknown territory.  They arrived in the outskirts of Prague around 3 a.m., and decided they should head to center of the historic city to look for postings and advertisements offering houses to rent.  After a long walk and several street cars later, they finally arrived in the center around 5 a.m. and stopped at a nearby exchange stand to switch currency – one of the items Tonks brought being a decent supply of British Pounds – got a quick breakfast, and began to search for a place to stay.

Barely 10 minutes into their search, they were approached by a thirty-something male, who asked if they needed a place to stay, and after answering 'yes', sent them to a local tourist company that specialized in renting homes to tourists.  After speaking with the agent at the office, and a few phone calls later, they were on their way to a section of Prague not far from the center, where an elderly lady had offered use of an unused home.   They were informed that the price would be named, and could be negotiated, when they arrived and met with the owner, so both were currently deep in thought of what an acceptable price would be to pay, based on the size of the home.  

As soon as they arrived, most of these thoughts went out the window.  The house, a white brick two-story home, was surrounded by a nearly 5 foot brick wall, with large shrubs adding another 2 or 3 feet to that height, making it virtually impossible to see onto the premises.  A gate stood outside blocking entrance to the home, which would halt unwanted and unexpected visitors, and the lot was quite large, rather atypical of most homes in the area.

Once they were let in, they introduced themselves the woman that owned the home, Mrs. Petra Novotna, and exchanged pleasantries, then continued to the rear of the house so they could first have a view of the privacy they would be offered.  The yard, nearly 75 feet long and 25 feet wide, was guarded much the same as the front, the same brick wall separating it from the lots around it, and similar, though slightly taller shrubs up against it.  After thoroughly looking around the back, they headed inside and were shown the house.

The house was spacious, with a large living area and a kitchen with an adjoining breakfast area that allowed them a view of the back yard was located on the bottom floor.  On the opposite side of the kitchen, across the living area, was a small office/study and a restroom under the stairs, something Harry silently said he wouldn't be using anytime soon.  Upstairs were three bedrooms and a large bathroom, all furnished as was the lower floor.  The largest bedroom was located directly at the end of the hall, and was obvious, without even seeing the other rooms, to be the master bedroom.  It was furnished with a king-size wrought-iron bed, with ivory colored hangings pulled closed around it.  An adjoining bathroom was found near the back left of the room, and had a shower & bath, as well as some hanging cabinets.  The two smaller rooms were nearly identical, each wit ha twin-sized bed and a few furniture pieces; wardrobe, dresser, and nightstand.  Located on the opposite side of the hallway was a large bathroom, much the same as the one located in the master bedroom, and a large storage closet just to the left of it.  

After seeing the inside of the house in entirety, they went back downstairs to the living room to discuss the rent.  After taking a seat, in which Mrs. Novotna offered each of them a cup of tea, which they appreciated and accepted, they began the discussion – Tonks, as usual, starting the conversation.

"Mrs. Novotna, this house seems perfect!" she said happily.  "How much are you asking per month of rent?"  

"I would like to ask for 30,000 Czech Korunnas per month for rent.  That will be for rent, gas, electric, and phone.  I know it is a lot, but this is a large house and is very private.  Will this be ok for you?"  She asked.

Tonks and Harry spoke quietly amongst themselves, and figured that 30,000 korunnas would be about 616 pounds a month, something they could handle, and would be easier once Harry sent away for some money from Gringotts, he was sure they could send him British notes.  They quickly agreed to accept the offer, and made a deal.

"Mrs. Novotna, we really don't need any time to think about it, it is an excellent house and we think the offer is good also.  Would it be possible to pay for one month now, and once month in a week or two?"  Harry said.

"Of course" she said brightly "I will leave my phone number here with you, you can call me anytime if you need anything, and when you decide to pay for the next month, please call and I will arrange to come and pick it up."

Looking to Tonks, she mock-glared at him, and pulled out most of what was left of the money she brought with her and paid Mrs. Novotna. 

"Thank you very much Mrs. Novotna." Tonks said.  "We appreciate you allowing us to stay here and will call you within the next week or so to arrange the next payment."

"Oh, thank you, I will be going now, and I will leave your keys and a map of the area here" she said as she laid them down on the coffee table in front of the couch "and please call me if you need anything – Bye."

As soon as she was out of the gate, Harry and Tonks both heaved a sigh of relief, neither believing their luck at finding such a place as quick as they had, and with the privacy it offered.  They both decided to take their things and put them in their respective rooms, and then clean up.  While making their way Harry suggested to Tonks that she should take the master bedroom since he was used to sleeping in a small room and she was here for his benefit, as well as safety.  She agreed, albeit reluctantly, and they each entered their room. 

A few minutes after sorting through his bag and arranging his few possessions, he heard a crash from downstairs, and a mild yell from Tonks telling him that she was fin and not to worry.  Knowing that she must have broken something, he left his room and made his way to the top of the stairs; looking down, he couldn't help but laugh at the sight he saw.  

Tonks was currently attempting to untangle herself from what Harry thought must be the curtains from one of the large windows downstairs – only he couldn't see any of them missing.  The floor around her was covered with soil from one of the potted plants that once stood just to the left of the base of the stairs, and she had a few leaves scattered on the floor around her and in her hair.  Trying his best to talk through his much needed laughter, he was finally able to get something out.

"What happened?"  He asked.

Tonks did her best to glare at him, but he was oblivious.  Neither did she reply at once, but kept at her attempt to rid herself of the curtain, which now resembled a toga the way it was wrapped around her.  Finally, Harry went down the stairs and helped her extract herself from the curtain.  Once that was done, she used her wand to clean herself up from the rest of the mess, and Harry repeated his earlier question, while adding 'are you ok?"

"Of course I'm ok.  Think happens to me all the time, you know.  As for what happened, I was trying to open the window up there," She said while pointing to a window over Harry's shoulder.  Turning, he saw it was at the top of the stairs.  "Anyway, Anyway, I was going to open it, but it was stuck so I pulled harder, and when it finally came open I fell back and grabbed the curtain in my haste.  Well, those came off, as you saw, and I spun around, lost my balance, and kinda fell down the stairs, where I knocked over the plant.  Also where you decided you would be more help laughing at me instead of helping – I'll remember that" She finished, trying to sound serious and stern, but smiling nonetheless.

"Well, I'm glad you're ok; and thank you for that, that's the first time I've laughed in a long time".

The rest of the day passed quickly for Harry as it was spent mostly discussing what he had planned on learning during his stay.  For the most part Tonks was in agreement and made very few suggestions or objections.  One thing she told Harry that rattled him a little was that she was going to continue his Occlumency training, and hopefully have him well on his way by the time they returned.  This had brought back some bad memories and brought forth some spite, as professor Snape, his hated potions master was supposed to teach him last year, though only managed to make Harry's scare ache continuously before finally kicking him, rather forcefully out of his office.  This of course reminded him of his late god-father, who, if he had made more of an effort at the mind-blocking technique, would probably still be alive and well.  On the other hand, he was relieved that he would be taught by someone he could trust; Tonks had been nothing but honest and trustworthy towards him so far.

That night Harry slept almost peacefully; he still had visions of Voldemort, but as the ministry had finally conceded the fact that he had returned, and he had no idea whether or not the visions were real, he ignored them as best he could.  Harry had committed as many details as he could to memory, not to torture himself, but because he believed they shouldn't be forgotten – especially if they had happened.  He had heard stories of Voldemort's first 'reign of terror', as it was dubbed, and noticed that few attacks were thought to be worthy of remembrance with the exception of his, and he had vowed that it would not be so this time; if he could help it.  

Throughout the few weeks that school had been out, Harry had made many pacts and pledges with himself.  He was steadfast in the belief that he was responsible for what was happening now and it was up to him to stop it – also due in no small part to the prophecy he had been informed of.  He had vowed to learn as much as possible to help him survive; sure Dumbledore had hinted that his hidden power could be that of love, but even if this were true, that would hardly save him from the death eaters, and they would surely fight for their master.  As best he could tell, once he mastered Occlumency, he would also need to master Legilimency, with love being something that Voldemort can't stand, he would need to trap Voldemort in his mind and focus on the love his mother had saved him with, as well as the love he both gave and received; he figured.  Back to the problem, this would do nothing to help him against the death eaters, which is why he was planning on learning all he could – including the so-called 'Dark Arts'.  Voldemort surely wouldn't expect that; precisely why he should learn it, and now he had Tonks to help him.

* * *

_Ok just to let those few know, yes, this will eventually be a Harry/Tonks fic, though it won't happen right off, I think they need some time to develop a friendship first. _

_Also, this is the first time I have written anything (aside from reports and whatnot) since first grade, which has been about 18 or so years, so go easy on me, please._

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	3. Chapter 3

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**_ In case you were curious…  I don't own any of this - characters and whatnot - it belongs to J.K. Rowling.  
Thanks to those that reviewed, it's nice to know some people are actually reading this :-) _**

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Harry awoke the next morning around 8, and quickly rose from his bed and prepared for the day ahead of him.  Energized at the mere thought of learning new magic, but more to the point, magic he had chosen and wanted to learn.  Bounding down the stairs, he caught sight of Tonks out in the backyard casting spells around, interested and intrigued with what she was doing; he quickly went outside to ask.

"What are you doing Tonks? "  

Glancing over her should at the sudden interruption, she smiled and spoke in her cheerful voice.

"Just casting some repelling charms – have to make sure the muggles around here don't get suspicious, so I set up some spells similar to those around Hogwarts; nowhere near as advanced though.  I also set up some illusion charms so we are virtually invisible out here.  Pretty neat, huh?"  She said cheerfully.

"Yeah, I guess so."  Harry replied, not fully understanding what she was on about.

"Why don't you come out and help before we get started… Oh, and if you're hungry, I managed to get some food this morning; dreadful language Czech, had a rather hard time at the store."

Harry quickly went back inside and grabbed a few pieces of toast and marmalade, before gulping down a glass of water and going back out back. 

"What can I help with?"  He asked once he was closer to Tonks, who was standing in the middle of the yard.

Beckoning him closer, Tonks spoke, "Well, these probably won't help you much as far as survival and dueling go, but it is always good to know.   The first spell is a repellent charm so people don't attempt to look in; even if they do, they will only see an empty yard.  Just say _Repelo Visio and give your wand one of these-" she said while moving her wand in a specific pattern. "Think you got it?" She asked._

"I think so." Harry told her, eager to do something.

"Well, let's go over there and give it a try." She said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder, before dragging Harry to the left side of the yard.

Harry raised his wand and began the necessary wand movements while saying the incantation.  Slowly a slim ray of dark blue slithered out of his wand, before finally, upon completing the incantation a burst of cobalt light erupted from the tip of his wand and struck the wall, seeming to spread the entire length before disappearing.  He looked over at Tonks, who regained her composure quickly.

"Well, that was interesting, let's see if it worked."  She said without further explanation.

She quickly used her wand and muttered a spell Harry failed to hear, and a dim streak of yellow shot out of her wand, struck the wall, and caused a ringing to be heard by Harry; similar to the sound a wind chime would make.  She looked back at Harry with a smile-

"Well, it seems to have worked quite well; we will know for sure after you cast it one last time on the opposite wall.  After you cast it, we should see a – distortion in the sky – would best explain it.  The spell creates something like a dome, and as soon as it goes up, there is a distortion.  Well, go ahead."  She finished with mock-impatience.

As Harry was about to cast the last spell, Tonks muttered something under her breath and a silvery blur came from her wand, and disappeared into thin air.  Before Harry had a chance to ask, she turned and went back inside.  Deciding he might as well cast the last spell, he went through the same motions as before and as soon as the color faded from the wall, he saw a slight glimmer a few feet above the brick wall; similar to the shimmer his invisibility cloak makes.  

Before he had a chance to wonder if he had done it correctly, Tonks was coming towards him with a smile.

"You did well, Harry.  It seems to have worked perfectly.  Why don't you get a drink then come back out and we'll get started, okay?"  She asked him.

Harry quickly agreed, and had run inside and returned in record time; a grin plastered on his face.

Her first question was to ask Harry what he already knew – aside from jelly-legs and tickling charms – stating that you can hardly use these in a real duel.  He told her about learning the disarming spell in his second year after seeing Snape use it in the _Dueling Club_, about the spells he learned during his fourth year in preparation for the Triwizard Tournament – like the reductor curse and impediment jinx.  Finally he told her about some of the spells he had both learned and taught during his fifth year – the shield charm and so on.  She seemed to think he had a good start with the basic knowledge of spells, so she decided to start with some minor pain spells, and spells to impair your opponent – either their senses or movement or other necessary functions.  She told him as much.

"Let's start out this way," she began, "you stand over there-" she pointed to an area about 15 feet from where she was, "and I will stay here.  I will send a curse at you, and after you heave either fought off, or recovered from, the effects, you will cast the same spell towards me.  That way we can be sure that you are performing the spell correctly."

As soon as Harry nodded his head in agreement and took his place, she raised her wand and spoke out clearly _lacerate.  A deep crimson light shot forth from her wand and struck his chest, dead center, immediately causing him to feel as though he had been on the receiving end of hundreds of tiny paper-cuts.  For a few moments he felt like screaming in pain, but once he looked down, he realized that there was no blood to be seen anywhere, nor was there a single cut on his body.  Trying to force himself to believe that the pain was not real, but rather in his mind, he slowly noticed that the pain, in the smallest possible amount, was lessening, though still terribly painful if he lost concentration.  After a few more minutes Tonks stopped the spell, and spoke._

"Good start Harry, but since I already told you it is possible to fight off the effects of a spell, you should have been able to fight that one off easily and in no time.  I understand it is difficult the first time, but that was one of the weakest pain spells.  Therefore, we will not move on until you can completely fight off the effects of it in… let's say – 10 seconds.  Ok."

Harry, thankful for the praise, but also ashamed that he couldn't even fight off the simplest of pain spells, dejectedly asked "How am I supposed to fight it off, can you give me some ideas?"

Tonks appeared thoughtful for a minute before answering. "Well, I suppose the easiest way to start with, would be to concentrate on the fact that the pain isn't real – that doesn't apply to all pain curses, mind, only some.  After you have down that technique, we will move on to more powerful spells and a more difficult, but much more reliable and powerful technique."  

And without another word, she threw the curse at Harry once again.  

It was three hours later that a very weary Harry, along with Tonks, went inside for lunch and a much needed break – though his relief was short-lived.  Barely thirty minutes later he was back outside and having Tonks curse him.  He wasn't yet able to fight off the effects, though little by little he made progress, and finally, shortly before dinner time, he was able to fight off the curse completely in a matter of seconds.

"Well done, Harry.  Now I would like you to cant the spell at me, keep it on me for only a few seconds, then release; I will let you know if it worked correctly.  Let's go!"  She finished.

Harry wasn't really looking forward to this; he liked Tonks and had no reason to hurt her, but knew he had to make sure he was performing the spell correctly.  So, forcing back any negative feelings about it, he raised his wand and spoke the incantation.  When the spell hit, Tonks glared at Harry and told him to drop release the spell, to which he obliged.

"Harry," she said.  "When you cast this spell, you have to want to cause harm.  It is not just the unforgivables that are this way, any spell with a negative effect are like that.  You may not want to physically hurt me, but you need to _feel_ the difference when you perform the spell correctly.  This time I want you to intend to hurt me.  Think up negative feelings if you must, but you will need to be able to perform these…."

"Now, try again, only this time, mean it" She told him forcefully.

Resigning himself to the fact that Tonks would continue this forever, at least until he got it right, Harry raised his wand again and spoke the incantation.

As soon as the spell hit, Tonks gave a small yelp, at which point he quickly released the spell and went over to her.

"Are you ok?"  He asked, kneeling down in front of her.

She sounded a bit shaken when she replied "I'm fine, I just wasn't expecting a spell that strong, especially after all the times you had been put under it.  Were you trying to hurt me that time?"  She finished while taking the hand Harry offered and pulling herself up.

"Well, you told me for the spell to work properly I had to want to, so yeah, I guess I did.  I'm really sorry."  He finished a bit sheepishly.

"Not to worry.  However, before we move on, I would like to make a protection charm of sorts using your wand, specifically, one that will lessen the amount of pain caused by spell from your wand.  I know it may seem unfair, but I have already been through this, and your last spell was pretty strong.  That ok?" 

"Yeah, ok.  Here you go."  He said, handing over his wand to Tonks and watching her curiously as she took out a necklace from underneath her robe and moved over to a small table that stood on the back patio.  As he moved closer, he heard her mumble something, though he couldn't make it out, and thin beam of gold light struck the medallion that hung on the necklace, causing it to glow golden before returning to its original silver color.

"What was that?"  Harry asked, interested in what she had done and how it would work.

"That was just a simple protection charm that can be cast on any item you wear, though for some reason if cast on clothes, it burns them – never really read up on why it's like that." She told him

"And how does it work?" 

"Well, it only works against the wand, or better to say, the wand core, from which the spell was cast. To actually perform the charm, you just say _Protegere Centru_."  She explained.  

She looked over at Harry, who seemed to be lost in thought, and after a few minutes, finally asked him if he was ok.  Snapping out of his reverie, he told her-

"Yeah, just thinking."  He hesitated before continuing, "Um… if that spell, the protection charm, was cast from one wand, would it have the same effects with its brother wand as well?"  

Tonks looked a little confused, so Harry went on.  "Let's say, for example, that your wand and my wand both had a core from… say a phoenix - the same phoenix – would you be protected from spells cast from both my wand and yours?"

She thought about it for a second before answering.  "Yes, I suppose it would; it is based on and against the core of the wand, but the chances of dueling with a wand made with the exact same core as your opponent are remote."

"Well," he said tentatively, "I would recommend that even once we are done with our training, you keep the charm place on your necklace."

She looked at him inquisitively, as if expecting a further explanation, and when it didn't come, she asked him.  "Is her a reason you think that, Harry?"  She sounded very serious, which was quite out of character for her.

Harry really didn't want to get into this, so he simply answered with a 'yes', and began to make his way back across the lawn, prepared for more practice.  It wasn't meant to be.  Tonks grabbed him by the shoulders and spun him around so he was facing her; she was looking both frightened and angry, not really knowing what Harry meant.

"What do you mean, **_yes_**?"  She asked in a near shout.

He tried to turn away, but the firm hold Tonks had on his shoulders prevented any escape.  "There is something you aren't telling me, something important, and I would like to know.  I promise you, anything you tell me, anything at all, will stay between us."

After a few moments of silence, Harry looked down, and in a voice barely above a whisper, mumbled – "Voldemort's wand and my wand are brothers; we both have a wand core with a phoenix feather from Fawkes."  Then, as soon as he finished, he turned away and headed inside.  

Tonks was shocked.  Once again, she had never been told this; it was amazing to her how much she kept learning about Harry.  He had just given her, in a way, an amazing protection charm against _You-Know-Who, and was depressed about it.  Well of course, she thought, his wand is brothers with that of the most evil person around.  If people found out they might be afraid he would turn out the same; trust the public to turn something that could be positive to negative.  She pushed these thoughts aside for now and hurried inside to find Harry in his room, sitting on his bed with a book in his hands.  She knocked lightly and spoke in a soft and calm voice. _

"Harry, may I come in?" She asked.

Harry emitted a soft, slow sigh, and after a few moments, nodded his head.  He knew what was coming and wasn't looking forward to it, not at all.  Tonks moved towards the bed and sat down next to him, though he was oblivious, staring at a picture of what she assumed was his parents wedding; his mother, father, and Sirius all beaming up at him.  She sat in silence, waiting for Harry to acknowledge her and tear his eyes away from the pictures.  To him, the picture was something akin to a treasure; it was sacred, and she had no business interrupting – Harry was silently grateful for this fact.  

Finally, several minutes later, Harry slowly closed the photo album, which he put on the right table next to his bed, and looked over at Tonks, who was sitting patiently next to him.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, "for walking off like that, I should have handled that better."

Thought Tonks understood, she thought now would be a prime time to play dumb.  "Handled what better?"

"You just seemed shocked when I told you about my wand and Voldemort's being brothers, so I assumed you think badly of me now.  After all, how can I share wand cores with one of the most evil wizards alive and not have at least some similarities." 

"Well," Tonks replied slowly, "I am sure you do have some similarities, but I think you have many more differences.  Also, I was not shocked about the wands, but rather the gift that you inadvertently gave me; the protection charm could mean the difference between life and death one day."

"Glad I could help," Harry said sarcastically, before adding in an undertone, "about all I can do."  Then he continued in a more normal pitched and volume voice.  "Just please don't tell anyone, not many know."

Tonks got a sly grin.  "I'll make you a deal; I will give you my word not to tell a living soul, if you will do three things for me. Ok?"  She paused for a moment, but after receiving nothing but a blank stare from Harry, continued.  "First, you allow me use of your wand and allow me to make a few more of these – I won't tell the people what they are.  Second, try not to always think the absolute worst of either of – I'm a friend, not an admirer.  Last, go to the store with me, it was dreadful yesterday."

"How many?"  Harry asked.

"How many what?"

"The protection charms you want to make, how many?" he asked her seriously.

"I don't know, no more than four or five, why?"

"Well, the more there are, the better chance there is that Voldemort will find out about them.  If he did, I am sure he would get a new wand, or figure out some way to overcome it."

"Good point.  No more than five, deal?"

"Deal" Harry agreed.

"Now, let's go to the store, just let me change real quick."

While Harry was waiting downstairs, he kept thinking, 'Tonks is in rare form today.  She hasn't broken anything or', as far as he know, 'tripped or stumbled.  She was also usually pretty quick on the uptake and attentive to details, not today though – quite out of character indeed.'  

This, seemingly insignificant detail, sparked a memory from the past; both the fake professor Moody and the actual paranoid auror shouting _Constant Vigilance.  Now he was confused; if this wasn't really Tonks, why was the person helping him?  He remained lost in thought for several minutes, until Tonks arrival at the base of the stairs brought him back to reality.  Still a little shaky, but fairly certain this was the real Tonks he was dealing with, he went ahead and put her through the test._

Slowly extracting his wand from his sleeve, he held it low, but trained on Tonks and approached her.  "Tonks, this may seem odd, but what were you always tripping over at Order headquarters?" He asked her in all seriousness.

"Oh, you mean that stupid cart umbrella thing that reminded me of a troll's leg?  Why do you want to know?"

"Well, I wasn't sure it was you… Sorry." he added at the end, feeling rather stupid about the whole ordeal.

"Why didn't you think it was me?" She asked, genuinely interested.

"Well, you… uh," he shuffled his feet in an embarrassed sort of way before continuing. "you usually fall, break something, or at least bump into a few things at least once or twice a day, and you have yet to do any of that today; at least as far as I know."  He looked straight down, hoping to hide the blush creeping over his face.  "Also, you didn't seem to be as attentive as you usually are, and didn't seem to think about Voldemort finding out about the protection charms either.  It just seemed strange, out of character for you." 

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**_This will eventually be a Harry/Tonks fic, though it won't happen right off, I think they need some time to develop a friendship first. _**

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	4. Chapter 4

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**_ In case you were curious…  I don't own any of this - characters and whatnot - it belongs to J.K. Rowling._**

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Harry was surprised when he looked up to see Tonks beaming at him, and when she spoke, what she said was quite unexpected, at least in Harry's opinion.

"That's great, Harry, you did real well.  I wanted to make sure you pay close attention to what is going on around you, and you spotted what was out of the ordinary; pretty quick if you ask me.  Also, I am _very_ relieved I don't have to move around so slow – you have no idea how difficult it is for me to be as graceful as I have been all day. Now, let's go to the store."

After they arrived back from the store, Harry prepared a quick dinner and they retreated to the living room, where Tonks quickly struck up a conversation about Harry's future and what he planned on doing.  

"Well," he began slowly, "I told professor McGonagall last year I would like to be an auror, but I doubt I did well enough on my O.W.L.'s, and I will never take another class from Snape."

Harry thought for a moment and remembered the letter he had received the day before he left Privet Drive, and, more specifically, the one the bore the Hogwarts crest; that must be my O.W.L. results, he thought.  He quickly told Tonks he would be right back, and bounded up the stairs to his bedroom, where he found the letter lying next to his books.  He grabbed the letter and headed back downstairs and sat across from Tonks, who was wearing an eager smile of anticipation.  For several minutes he held it, staring at the emerald ink on the front of the envelope, which bore the words _Harry Potter_, and underneath, _Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry_, followed by _Year 6 class selection and supply list; O.W.L. results enclosed_.  Finally, not being able to hold back any longer, Tonks reached forward and grabbed the envelope, and when Harry didn't protest, opened it with haste.  She rifled through the parchments, until she came to what she recalled to be O.W.L. results. 

Several things happened at that moment; for one, Harry, who had been watching Tonks with a half-amused expression, suddenly went limp in the neck, and decided the floor was something of great fascination – perhaps it was the Asian style rug.  Tonks, who had been holding her breath – she was just as nervous as Harry was, or so it seemed – read the results quickly and let out a stifled gasp; whether or not this was a good or bad sign, Harry was none to anxious to find out.  

Tonks fixed her eyes on the top of Harry's head, willing him to look up, which he finally did some five minutes later and barely managed to catch his breath.  Tonks face gave nothing away, showed no emotion, she gave away no signs at all as to how well, or poor, he had done.  Finally, he spoke, and to him it sounded as though he was hearing his voice from a great distance.

"How did I do – good or bad?"  He asked, though not really wanting to hear the answer if it was the latter.

"Well," Tonks drew out the word, long enough for the most patient man to lose some sense of restraint.  "I don't think it is a matter of good or bad, why don't I just tell you what you failed to earn an O.W.L. in."

Harry nodded dumbly and she went on; Harry felt as if the sound was ricocheting off a thousand walls before it reached his ears.

"You missed an OWL in, let's see, Divination, History of Magic and Astronomy; I never cared for those much either".

Hearing this, Harry's heart lifted a little – maybe he did ok.

"So," Tonks said, this time sounding much closer to the norm to Harry.  "Let's start with Charms, shall we."  Before Harry could voice protest, she continued in her cheery voice, which rang out in Harry's mind.  "Charms, your overall score is Exceeds Expectations, not bad.  Now, Defense Against the Dark Arts, your score is – Outstanding – wonderful job Harry." She added while peeking at him over the top of the parchment.  He attempted a smile, though it looked more like he was trying to keep his mouth tightly shut while showing his teeth.  Tonks fought back a laugh and went on. 

 "Care of Magical Creatures – Exceeds Expectations; Herbology – Acceptable.  Well, who wants to play around with man-eating plants all day anyway?"  She huffed.  "Divination – Acceptable; Transfiguration, practical – Exceeded Expectations, theory – Exceeded Expectations-"

Harry knew what was coming next, and he silently wondered if Snape would have threatened the test administrator just to make sure he did poorly.  With baited breath, he waited…

"Potions, practical – Outstanding, theory – Exceeded Expectations."  Upon hearing this, Harry became lost in thought.  Sure, he wanted to take Potions so he could apply to become an auror, but when it came down to Snape teaching, he was unsure.  Tonks, in her ever cheerful voice spoke, bringing Harry out of his thoughts.

"Well, it looks like you can take the classes you need to become an auror; you did great!"

"Actually, I probably have no chance to become an auror.  I am _not_ taking another class from Snape – _ever_."  Harry told her, his voice leaving no room for imagination or doubt.  

Tonks thought for a moment before replying; she could understand Harry not wanting to take a class from Snape.  In all honesty, she would prefer she not have to be around him – he was, perhaps, the most unpleasant person she had ever met, and he never passed up an opportunity to insult Harry or his family, Sirius included – She could only imagine what classes would be like with him.

"Perhaps we can find another way for you to learn potions; just because you don't take the class doesn't mean you can't sit the NEWT test.  I will talk to a few people later and see what we can do.  Snape is not the only person who can teach potions to someone.  Let's leave it at that for now and get some rest."

The next morning Harry met Tonks outside around 8:00 a.m. and after a brief greeting, went to his, now, customary spot in the yard, across from Tonks.  As soon as he reached his spot, Tonks spoke…

"Ok Harry.  Today we will work on a few disabling spells – you'll see what I mean." She finished with a sly grin.  

Pointing her wand at Harry, she made a quick, downward slash, and clearly said the incantation; _Attero__ Visum._  A stream of magenta light struck Harry right between the eyes and, immediately, everything went black.  

"You just have to wait for it to wear off, Harry."  Tonks called out.

Harry, despite the foreign sensation, couldn't help but chuckle slightly at Tonks 'joke'; he couldn't see what she meant, though he did nod to let her know he had heard her.  While waiting for the effects to wear off, he tried to focus on his remaining sense to compensate for the loss.  The effects however, were short-lived, and the curse wore off in just over two minutes.  

When he had regained his sight, Tonks immediately began to explain. "Unfortunately, for several of these types of curses, there is no fighting the effects, or counter-curses, they do physically impair you.  This one, for example, creates a type of black coating that completely covers your eyes; others may actually cause a bone to break or you skin to rip – the list goes on and on.  Now it's your turn."

Harry performed the same spell on Tonks, though it wore off much quicker in her than it had on him, thanks to the charm she now wore around her neck.

The rest of the day was spent sending curses back and forth with Tonks; some caused to recipient to bleed, some made them go deaf for a time and some made them fell like they were falling.  All of them proved useful, though Harry's favorite because the opponents tongue to become stuck to the roof of their mouth.  When this curse was cast it seriously hindered their speech, making their spells either non-existent or extremely weak.  There were ways around this, as Tonks had explained, but in order to overcome speaking an incantation, you had to have a great depth of not only knowledge about magic, but also, and more importantly, what magic really was.  

In Harry's mind, he figured that Voldemort and Dumbledore could both probably overcome this, as well as, probably, create spells – after all, Voldemort has already created at least one already.  

As they were heading back inside, Tonks turned to him, "Harry, how would you feel if at the end of each week you take a test of sorts, then we can practice dueling, ok?"  She asked.

Not big on the idea of tests, but thinking it would be in his best interests, he agreed, to which Tonks smiled, and they continued their way inside.  Arriving in their respective rooms, both of them cleaned up before retreating back to the kitchen for dinner, to be followed by Occlumency lessons; something else Harry was not looking forward to.

When the time came for them to work on Harry's Occlumency, Tonks asked what exactly he had been taught, and how to react.  

"Nothing really," he began, "all he ever told me was to clear my mind, then he would perform the spell and start looking through my thoughts."

Tonks was surprised at this to say the least.  That is not what Snape should have been doing – well, not entirely anyway.  She had a different approach, which she explained to Harry.  

"That's not really all there is to it, nor is it the best way to learn."  Harry huffed in an annoyed and angry sort of way, but Tonks knew it wasn't directed at her.  "The important thing" she continued as though she hadn't heard a thing, "is to keep your thoughts organized, and when someone is performing the Legilimency spell on you, you will be able to redirect your thoughts.  So to start, yes you want to clear your mind, but that is mainly so that you are more able to sense an intrusion to your thoughts."  She paused for a moment to let this sink in before continuing.  

"Now, let's try this.  This time I want you to clear you mind – try not to think of anything – then, when I perform the spell, I want you to try to find out what I am looking for.  I will release the spell as soon as, or before, I reach a thought.  I promise" she added after seeing his face, "I will not make it anything embarrassing or personal.  Let's go."

Harry did his best to clear his mind, and when he nodded to Tonks to start, she pointed her wand at him and said _Legilimens__. _ Immediately Harry's thoughts began to pull towards his arrival at Hogwarts before he began his first year.  He saw himself meeting Ron; Hermione coming in and asking about Neville's toad, Trevor.  Then it jumped to the Great Hall and the sorting. 

Harry was desperate, she couldn't know what the Sorting Hat had told him; then. Just as it had been in Snape's office, the voice in his mind told him 'Show her the feast after the Sorting, or block her.'  As soon as he saw the first images that reminded him he was heading up to the center, about to be sorted, he shouted and the spell stopped.

"Do you know what I was looking for?"  Tonks asked.

"Um… the Sorting in my first year."  It was more of a question that an answer, but Tonks nodded her head nevertheless. 

"Let's try again, this time I want you to try to direct your thoughts to something very familiar, ok."  

Before he even had a chance to respond, the spell took hold of his mind again – this time much closer to his sorting than before.  He, once again, listened to the familiar voice in the back of his mind and tried to focus on the Gryffindor common room.  The result was odd to say the least.  Hermione was still wearing the Sorting Hat, but now she was in the center of the common room.

The spell broke and Tonks was wearing a look of satisfaction across her face. "I would say that was quite an improvement, let's try a few more times.  Now I want you to try and block me, not redirect your thoughts."

They did this a few times, and Harry found it was much easier now the he had a little knowledge to build on.  In fact, on his seventh attempt, he was able to block Tonks out completely in less than thirty seconds.  Tonks seemed to be satisfied with his progress for the evening, and wished him a 'good night.' 

As soon as Harry reached his bed, he fell into a slumber, though for Tonks, she had a much more difficult time of it.  She lay awake in her room, trying to think of ways to cheer Harry up.  Sure, he was enjoying the training, but he needed more than that.

Finally deciding on a few ideas, over an hour later, she too, fell asleep.

At the same time that the new friends went to their rooms, some 650 miles away, two other friends were reading a letter they had received that afternoon.  Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger were going over a note that had been sent to them from professor Dumbledore.

_Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger,_

_            I am sorry to inform you that Mr. Potter has gone away for a while.  He left his home on the night of his birthday with a plan to leave unnoticed; this however, was not meant to be.  The Order quickly discovered his absence from Number 4 and went to investigate, then to search for him.  It was Ms. Tonks who found him and learned of his intentions.  She quickly relayed this information to me and the rest of the Order.  After much debate, during which she adamantly refused to reveal Harry's location, she turned in her Order medallion and left.  From what little we do know, she and Harry left the country that night.  We honestly have no idea where they are, as the owl we sent to them with a tracking charm returned; apparently they have placed charms on themselves to prevent them from receiving owl post.  I can, however, assure you that Ms. Tonks is training Harry.  I am sorry I can not give you anymore information, but at the moment that is all I know._

_            Sincerely,_

_   Albus Dumbledore - Headmaster of __Hogwarts__School__ of Witchcraft & Wizardry_

Neither of the friends really knew what to say or think; both had assumed there was a possibility of Harry doing something rash and foolish, but the way Dumbledore had explained and described it, it had been neither.  Rather, Harry seemed to have made a plan, and once found by Tonks, he told her about it and she agreed.  Lost in their thoughts, it was Hermione who finally broke the silence.

"I don't like this Ron, I really don't like this.  I would like to know what Tonks is teaching him, and why she went against Dumbledore."

Ron, who was looking back at her in an odd sort of way replied.

"Hermione, Dumbledore doesn't seem to be too worried, and I reckon that whatever Harry is learning, he is learning to help him.  He knows that You-Know-Who will come after him and I bet he just wants to be prepared."

Ron was trying to be positive about the situation, but was still, inwardly, just as worried as Hermione.  However, if Dumbledore was not worried, then he would try to show the same appearance.  

Hermione opened her mouth to speak again, but Ron cut her off before she could start.

"Drop it, Hermione." He told her, "There is nothing we can do, so we might as well trust Tonks, Harry and Dumbledore – and get some sleep."

Hermione didn't look like she agreed, but allowed Ron to force her out of his room so _he_ could at least go to bed.  Once Ron shut the door to his room, Hermione scowled at it and silently wondered how he could care so little about what could potentially be happening with and to Harry; their best friend.  Still upset with Ron's actions, and lack of response, she stomped down the hallway to the room she was staying in and got ready for bed.  Still fuming, she lay down and tried to get some sleep; it finally came to her several hours later. 

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_Took a while for this chapter – I was plagued with a new job and it took away a bit of time.  I'm sure this chapter is not up to par, but it was written over an eight day period, and things tend to get a little 'out of whack' for me when there is that much space between start and finish.  I'll do better next time; promise._

_Also, just to cover a few things in the reviews, look below._

_Captuniv – I don't believe that Dumbledore is Harry's guardian, so the Goblins would really have no reason to inform him of any of Harry's withdraws or visits to Gringotts._

_A Reader – Thanks for the comments, helps to make a poor person, such as myself, want to continue this endeavor._

_Destined Enchantress – Thank for letting me know about the mistake; it's difficult to try to proof-read my own story, I know what I mean to say – I got that error fixed too._

_To the above-mentioned and others – I am glad you enjoy the story and hope you continue to do so.  I also appreciate the reviews, oddly enough, it does motivate you to work on it; bizarre._

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	5. Chapter 5

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**_ In case you were curious…  I don't own any of this - characters and whatnot - it belongs to J.K. Rowling._**

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Harry awoke the next morning and slowly got out of bed; he hadn't slept well during the night.  While it was nice that he didn't receive the _Daily Prophet_, his nights were still plagued with dreams and visions, mostly of Voldemort and his minions torturing and killing innocent people; muggle and magical alike.  He also, sometimes, relived the events that had taken place in the Department of Mysteries, repeatedly watching Sirius fall through the Veil, over and over; not once though had the Sirius in his dreams blamed him.  

Harry got ready, and after a quick breakfast, walked out back just in time to see Tonks, once again shoot a silvery mist out of her wand, again seeming to take the shape of a bird just before vanishing in the distance.

"What was that?" Harry asked, startling Tonks enough for her to whirl around and fix her wand on him.  

Once she saw who it was however, she visibly relaxed and smiled.  Since she offered no answer, Harry asked again. "That spell you just did, what was it?  I saw you do it yesterday, and am pretty sure I saw professor Dumbledore do it in my fourth year."

"It's a type of message spell, usually for short distances, but there are a few variations that allow it to go further." She told him.  

Harry thought this spell could be really useful in the future, so naturally, he wanted to learn how to use it. 

"Could you teach me how to do it?" He asked, then added "Please" in a pleading voice after seeing her frown slightly.

"I suppose, but I can only teach you two of the three variations; one of them is known only to the Order and aurors."  She paused for a moment, moving closer to Harry before continuing.  "The first type is controlled by thoughts; for example, if you wanted to send a message to me about being hurt, you would focus on you being hurt and me knowing, then say the incantation _Mandatum__ Cogitatus_.  Try it real quick and let's see."  

Harry took a few steps back and thought about saying _thank you_ to Tonks and performed the spell; nothing happened.

"What was your thought?" Tonks asked

"I was thinking of saying _thank you_ to you." 

"That wont work," she said matter-of-factly, in a tone not unlike Hermione's.  "These are more thoughts on feelings – like anger, pain, love, et cetera. What you were doing is more of a message."  

Now Harry was really confused – didn't she tell him it was a message spell, and isn't saying _thank you_ a feeling of gratitude…

"Why don't we just do the other – this one seems kinda iffy to me."  Harry said awkwardly; Tonks laughed, but agreed.

"Ok, this time just think of what you would like to say.  The person you want to receive it is determined during the incantation.  Just say _Mandatum__ Legationis_ and the persons first and last name.  I know there are some people that have the same name, but your thoughts are also forced into the spell, which also direct the spell to the correct person.  Try it!"  Tonks finished excitedly.

Again Harry thought of saying _thank you_ and performed the spell, "Mandatum Legationis Nymphadora Tonks."  Immediately a silvery mist shot out of his wand, similar to his first attempt at a Patronus, and glided towards Tonks, finally disappearing into her forehead. 

"You're welcome," she told him. "The reason it moved so slowly is just a matter of practice – with time it will move fast and take a definite shape, usually no more than a foot long and a foot tall, and usually the same form as your Patronus.  Also, it is only visible right after you send it and right before it reaches its intended destination."

"Thanks a lot, Tonks.' Harry said sincerely before getting a questioning look on his face. "How far will the second one you taught me go?" He asked.

"The second one" she said mockingly, though with a smile, "also called a message spell, will go as far as you want, I suppose.  I sent one to Dumbledore letting him know we are safe, and he must have gotten it because I got one telling me he let your friends Ron and Hermione know you are ok.  He still, however, has no clue where we are, and informed your friends of as much."

After that the day passed quickly.  Both of them firing spell at each other, an occasional break thrown in for good measure and a quick lunch.  Before he knew it, Harry had eaten dinner with Tonks and was getting ready, mentally, to practice – he used that term loosely – Occlumency.

"Ok, Harry; right to it then."  Tonks said, and without so much as a warning, cast her spell.  

Harry's world dissolved around him and his thoughts were turning to memories of the first time he met Tonks.  Completely unprepared for this, as he assumed she would, once again, be searching for his sorting, it took him a moment to regain control of his mind.  Slowly, he began to push away the memories she was seeing, and once the first meeting at his aunt and uncle's house melted away, only to be replaced by the greeting he received at the end of last year, when he got off the train.  Finally, he was able to both control and direct his thoughts well enough that he, once again, sent his mind and the intruder back to memories of an empty common room in Gryffindor Tower.

When the spell finally ended, Harry looked up at Tonks, who wore a lopsided grin that quickly changed to a bright smile, before she spoke.

"You did well that time, even though you allowed me to see what I wanted.  You were able to eventually direct me to thoughts or memories that you chose – completely."  She studied him for a moment before continuing, "Let's try one more time then call it a night."  

Immediately Harry was under the spell again.  Harry had no idea what she was looking for this time, and after only a few seconds was able to direct his mind, and her, to the Gryffindor common room.  The spell stopped and Tonks was sporting a broad grin.

"Excellent, Harry!  I didn't even have a chance.  We'll keep working on this until you can do it second nature, then I will explain to you how to determine what information is being searched for – it can be useful sometimes to lead the attacker astray, instead of just pushing them aside.  Once you have that down, we will work on keeping your mind closed off, or guarded, while you are sleeping."  At that point, she turned from Harry and towards the stairs, calling a _good night_ over her shoulder as she began to climb them.  Harry responded with the same farewell and followed suit, though none too eager to go to bed.

He lay, staring at the ceiling for a long time unable to sleep before finally deciding to practice the message spell.  Since he was alone, he held his wand at a distance and tried to send it to himself; it didn't work.  After the fourth attempt, he managed to see the familiar stag that was his fathers form.  Thoroughly please with himself, he quickly sent a short message to both Ron and Hermione, letting them know that he was ok, and asked them not to be upset with him for leaving .  So pleased with his progress, he tried the thought spell one last time; focusing on letting Tonks know how happy he was (because he managed the message spell) – he muttered the incantation and, to his surprise, out of his wand came _Prongs_, who passed through his wall and into, he assumed, Tonks' bedroom.

A moment later he regretted this decision.  A few crashes, followed by a _thud_, and a shout of _'Harry'_ brought his state of happiness to a screeching halt.  It wasn't the upset type of voice that he normally was at the receiving end of when staying with the Dursley's, nor was it the happy tone that normally accompanied Tonks' voice; rather, it was the type of voice you hear when you have just done something wrong, and if you don't fess up to it you will be in trouble.  Deciding that the sound of his name was more of a summons than anything, he went to answer.  

Tonks, who had been, still, preparing for bed (it took a while as she was constantly tripping over her _things_, that were strewn haphazardly around her room(was startled by the sudden appearance of a misty stag, that, before she could think, zoomed towards her forehead and upon contact gave her a feeling of immense happiness and thoughts of Harry.  Realizing what this was, after she picked herself up off the floor and wiped the water off her face, she called for Harry.

A few moments later, a very nervous Harry opened the door to Tonks room – trembling head to foot.  He opened the door as quietly as her could, hoping that she wouldn't hear him and he could retreat back to the safety of his own bedroom; it wasn't meant to be.  As soon as he poked his head around the door, which was only open a foot wide, he saw her, standing there in all her glory.  Slowly, he moved from behind the door and into the room – finally stopping no more than five feet from her.  

Tonks was standing directly in front of him, completely disheveled and wearing a nightdress.  Harry, unsure whether to laugh at her state or run for cover, opted for silence.  While running did have its  advantages, he figured he would probably not get too far because his knees were coming dangerously close to banging each other as they shook from nervousness.  Laughing was out because, well, he valued his life.  She, of course, gave away nothing.  Her face was like stone as far as Harry was concerned, though he privately thought a lot smoother, and her expression was indecipherable.  Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Harry broke the silence.  "Tonks?"  He asked, his voice cracking with anxiety due to the lack of response from her.

Tonks couldn't take it any longer, Harry looked frightened beyond his wits, so she broke down in laughter.  Harry didn't know what to think, he was facing what he was sure to be a good berating, but instead, Tonks had gone loony.  He was frozen, though he assumed he wasn't in any trouble.

Managing to get her laughter under control, Tonks wiped the tears from her eyes and looked over to Harry, who still stood rooted to the floor.  Tonks immediately felt bad, especially after noticing all color had left his face; though she did find some relief in the fact that his shaking was nearly under control.  Here she was laughing at him and he was scared stiff, literally.  "I'm sorry Harry, but you just looked so worried."  She told him while fighting back another round of laughter.  

Harry managed a weak smile and nodded dumbly, even though there was no reason to nod, he felt it should be done, a sort of pre-emptive nod.  For minutes he stood there, still and silent; it wasn't until Tonks came face to face with him that he snapped back to attention and spoke.  "I'm sorry Tonks," he said sincerely, and with a bit of fear in his voice.   "I just wanted to see if I could do it."  He added quietly at the end of his apology, before dropping his gaze to his toes.

She let him know it was fine and that she wasn't upset with him or mad at him, but he just shrugged his shoulders as though it was nice to hear, but didn't really believe it.  As he turned to leave,  Tonks gave him a little hug, hoping it would help to reassure him that he really hadn't done anything wrong – it must have worked too, because he smiled up at her and went straight to his room, where he promptly fell asleep.  Tonks was not far behind, and she too, soon fell asleep.

The next few days passed quickly and without incident as Harry continued to learn new spells and Occlumency.  With his schedule as strict as it was, Harry hadn't given so much as a glance to the books that he brought with him; books on areas of magic usually referred to as _Dark Magic_.  He also hadn't had much in terms of dreamssonce the third Occlumency lesson; Tonks had asked him to try to clear his mind each evening before bed, and apparently, with her approach of _not sneering at you constantly_, he had improved dramatically.  He also had failed to notice that as time went on, blocking his mind was becoming more and more like a second nature to him – when his dreams began to shift, he would subconsciously block the link between Voldemort and himself, thus putting a stop to the horrible images that threatened to enter his mind.

The first change in his training came, or would come, on a Saturday.  That Friday, Tonks told him that the next day she would give him a little test over the spells he had learned, then they would spend a few hours dueling; she also told him that that evening she would have a surprise for him.  After finishing dinner and saying their goodnights, Harry went to bed wondering what this surprise could be, and what the test Tonks was going to give him would be like.  It was with the same thoughts racing through his mind that he finally fell asleep a few hours later.

The next morning after a quick breakfast, Harry went out to meet Tonks in the backyard where she would be giving him her _test_.  "Ready for your test, Harry?"  Tonks asked happily, as smile plastered on her face as usual.  

"I guess."  Harry replied, still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.  "What will the test be?"  He asked.

"Oh, it's pretty simple really, I will tell you a spell, and then you will have to perform it."  She said this as thought having someone curse you for absolutely no reason was the greatest thing in the world.  Well, better he than me, he thought, which cheered him up a bit – it didn't last long though.

"After that, I will send some curses at you, which you will have to correctly identify and successfully fight off the effects."  Tonks told him.

Harry's face fell, Tonks laughed.  "Come on Harry, you've had all of them on you before; don't chicken!"  

Harry nodded his head gloomily as if he were facing sudden death, but at least his would face it sideways – there was a much better chance it would miss him.

"Face forward Harry, and send the laceration curse at me."

Here goes, thought Harry, before he turned to face Tonks and said _lacerate_.  As soon as the curse struck her, she gave him a thumbs up to let him know he performed it correctly.  They went on like this for sometime; he knew he had sent at least fifty curses, hexes and jinxes at her before she finally told him it was his turn.   

Harry took his place and stood defiantly, knowing that what was about to come would only help him in the future, and nodded to Tonks to begin.  The first curse she sent at him he immediately recognized as the Burning curse, and quickly fought off the spells effects.  She sent several more like this – simple pain curses – and in a surprise move, used the Legilimency spell.  Since Harry wasn't expecting this, it took him much longer than usual to block her out of his mind, but he did.  He saw a slight grin on her face, which quickly vanished as she cast her next curse.

For the longest time she sent various spells at Harry, and it wasn't until shortly after lunch time that she finally decided they could stop.  After lunch, where Harry did nothing but glare at the miserable sandwich Tonks had supplied for him, as though daring it to tell him he could do better, they went back outside and began dueling.

Harry quickly realized that even though Tonks may be a walking catastrophe, she was quite agile when dueling.  It didn't take long for her to disarm and immobilize Harry the first time.  After receiving a few pointers they went at it again.

Several hours later, Harry had yet to defeat Tonks in a duel; it wasn't that he wasn't any good, just that Tonks seemed to be so calm, confident and agile.  Harry on the other hand was not so calm, though he was rather quick on his feet – thanks to the reflexes borne from five years of quidditch.  He also failed to notice one _very_ important fact; Tonks was still wearing the protection charm he had given her.  

As they were walking in, Tonks mentioned they might go out and eat, something Harry liked the sound of.  Getting out of the house and getting some food prepared by someone other that either Tonks or him, sounded very appealing.  He agreed, and the two of them headed up to their rooms and prepared to go out.  

When they met each other back downstairs and were ready to go, they headed out of the house and began to make there way towards the center or the historic city.  During the long walk, they made some light conversation, and it wasn't until he mentioned the dueling, that Tonks gave the slightest of giggles and wore a look of guilt on her face. 

Harry had told her that she was either a very good duelist, or he was the epitome of horrible.  "Well…" Tonks said slowly, "I wasn't exactly being fair."  She said to gain Harry's full attention.  

"What do you mean you weren't being fair?"  Harry asked.  They had stopped by now, and Harry was staring into her ice-blue eyes intently.  A small chuckle escaped her lips, before she finally spoke, though she failed to meet his eyes.

"I, uh, still had on the, uh, protection charm."  She smile a winning smile as she looked up at him, hoping to ease the tension.  Harry mumbled a bit before he spoke clearly, "Cheater."  It seemed to Tonks that her easy-going attitude had, in fact, made an impact on Harry, as he was now more the same, and sometimes joking.  Tonks just smiled at him and they took off walking once again.

Eventually they found a pizzeria on a side street off Wenceslas Square, but still with a partial view of the museum that stood at the end of the square.  They hadn't really planned on going so far into the center for fear of an encounter, but there were some places this far in where people spoke, and understood, English.  

They shared a pizza, and each had a coca-cola while they engaged in conversation.  After paying, they walked around the center a bit and looked at the some of the old buildings.  Harry vaguely remembered something from his early schooling about an old bridge with a bunch of statues on it, and after mentioning it to Tonks, they set out to find it; which they did nearly half an hour later.  

In Harry's mind, the bridge was amazing, he learned that it had been guilt in the fourteenth century by Charles IV, the Czech King and Holy Roman Emperor.  He learned a little of the different statues, and just as he had been told to do, touched the statue of Czech martyr, St. John of Nepomuk, for good luck.  After spending nearly an hour on the bridge, the two of them began to head back to the rental home, some seven kilometers away.

As they finally began to close on the section of Prague in which there house stood, Harry began to fell slightly uneasy.  While it was normally dark in this area, tonight it seemed unusually dark – perhaps their excursion to dinner and the sight-seeing afterwards was not such a good idea; it was along these lines that he thought.  As they made their way to the last stretch of unlit road, that would lead them to the main street on which their home resided, an intense feeling of paranoia took over Harry, and he instinctively moved closer to Tonks.

"Tonks, I have a bad feeling something even worse that what I think will happen, will happen."  Harry told her quietly, though still looking straight ahead.

"Harry," she said rather loudly, "what could possibly happen in the middle of night in a place where no one knows we are?"  

"Well-"  Harry was at a loss for words, no one should know they were here, but his feeling of uneasiness was growing more intense the closer they got.  Taking a chance and glancing backwards, Harry saw a sight that made him weak at the knees, someone was back there, and appeared to be holding something that resembled a wand.  Instinctively, he grabbed his wand and was about to signal Tonks, when a soft tingle went through his body and he slumped forward to the ground, unconscious.  

Tonks, who not only heard Harry fall, but saw him as well, immediately put up a shield and turned around to face the attacker.  As she caught sight of the person who now stood no more that ten feet away, there was a sudden implosion of silence; then without missing a beat, the young auror went to work on the person responsible for attacking her young apprentice. 

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_Well, another chapter up – hopefully the next one will come out a little quicker than this one did.  _

_paul16__ – I suppose Harry could have requested that Tonks look to a different area in his mind, be he probably knew that the quickest way to learn was to really want to keep something secret.  In my mind, nothing motivates you more than when you actually have to do something, not just for future plans, but for the here and now.   Hope you are enjoying the story so far._

_Snifflers__ unite – Glad you are enjoying the sotry, and thanks for the idea; a 'smattering of action' would be great, and I have adjusted my 'so-called' story line to include your idea.  Hope to hear more of them :-) _

_Destined Enchantress – Can't give anything away now, can I :-) _

_And to the others who reviewed, thanks for the reviews, and I hope you enjoy the story._

_I do hope to see some more reviews as the story goes on.  Let me know if you like the story, hate it, and also, if you have any ideas, please let me know – my imagination can only do so much, and an idea from the outside can really help to spice up the story._

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	6. Chapter 6

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**_ Well, it doesn't take a rocket surgeon to realize that this took me forever to get out. I had a few 'things' to deal with, and they took me a while to get resolved. There are several other good reasons for the delay too, I just can't think of any right now. _**

**_Also, I apologize now for the short chapter that follows, but it is, in a sense, a transitional chapter (I use that term loosely, owing to the fact I have no idea what it means). Anyway, I will be updating more regularly from now on, I was told about every week and a half to two…_**

**_Enjoy! And please, be gentle._**

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Spinning around just in time to see a streak of red flying towards her, Tonks quickly ducked and moved to her left, then fired off a spell of her own, only hoping to give her enough time to prepare for the attack that had already begun. As she shot off her spell, she moved back to her right and took her stance between her attacker and Harry. Not the she was afraid for Harry at the moment, but with Death Eaters, and her cousin at that, you never know.

Glaring hatefully at Bellatrix, Tonks shot off a few quick curses, which Bellatrix successfully blocked or dodged. "Is that the best you can do little Tonksie?" Bellatrix taunted as she began to circle; Tonks following her lead and doing the same.

As soon and Tonks could see Harry visibly, she stopped circling, "What are you doing here Bellatrix," she spat as coldly as she could muster at the moment. '_Just a few more minutes'_ she thought, hoping that Harry would be able to break out of the stunner that was cast upon him. As she was glancing towards Harry, Bellatrix quietly sent a spell her way, causing her to lift off the ground and be thrown several yards back, landing painfully on the ground.

As Bellatrix let out a shrill laugh, Tonks did her best to get back on her feet, and while doing so, noticed that Harry had started to break through the stunning spell – as his hands were giving slight movement now. As soon as Tonks saw this, she doubled her efforts to get up, and as soon as she did, remarked to Bellatrix, "I'm still here Bellatrix."

Bellatrix, now furious that her cousin refused to give up, jabbed her wand violently in Tonks' direction and screeched _Crucio_. A huge burst of red streaked towards, and struck Tonks, forcing her to collapse to the ground screaming, while Bellatrix laughed maniacally. As she held the curse, she failed to notice Harry slowly making his way to a standing position.

Once standing, he summoned all the energy he could and shouted, at the top of his lungs, _lacerate_. Caught unaware, Bellatrix was struck with a powerful laceration curse, allowing plenty of time for Tonks to regain her wits and stand again, where she quickly moved towards Harry.. As soon as Bellatrix fought off the effects of the curse and turned to face where Tonks stood, the look of hatred was clearly visible in her eyes.

In the moment she looked towards the two, one thing was obvious to Harry – Bellatrix was out to kill. Somewhat frightened of what would come next, Harry subconsciously moved back a step; and not a moment too soon.

As Harry stepped back, Bellatrix and Tonks both began to shout out spells, either one dodging or deflecting the others. Harry watched in morbid fascination as Tonks landed a curse on Bellatrix that caused the bones in her forearm to slightly splinter – several shards poking through the skin. Bellatrix, unfazed, shot a spell at Tonks, creating several gashes along her chest and stomach – only noticeable due to the red stains seeping through her shirt.

As the duel went on, and each opponent slowly became more fatigued and battered, Harry finally came to his senses and once again summoned all his energy and shot the blasting curse at Bellatrix, successfully vaulting her nearly ten feet from where she stood previously. Harry, fearful for Tonks' life, as he didn't know the extent of her injuries, quickly ran to her and told her to apparate back to the house and he would meet her there shortly. After a very brief argument, Tonks obliged and closed her eyes briefly before she disappeared with a crack. Once she was gone, Harry took off running, and didn't stop or look back until he was in the safety of the house he was staying at.

Upon arriving, he noticed Tonks lying on the couch in the living room barely awake amd bloody. Rushing to her side, he gently rocked her shoulder, successfully rousing her from her semi-sleep. "Tonks," he said softly, yet with a sense of urgency, "you need to clean yourself up and mend your wounds."

Tonks, in no state for a conversation now that the adrenaline left her, merely looked at him sadly and began to close her eyes, waiting for sleep to overtake her from exhaustion. With no other choice, Harry quickly went to the kitchen and found a large mixing bowl, which he filled with lukewarm water, returning it to the living room and setting it on the coffee table, then running upstairs for a washrag.

When he returned to the living room for a second time, he dipped the rag in the water, and slowly began cleaning her face and arms. Once finished, he realized that the cuts on her chest on stomach would not clean themselves. Hoping that Tonks would not be angry with him, he used his wand, making the tip of them scissors, and removed the blood-stained shirt her. Carefully, he cleaned the cuts, periodically rinsing the rag off in the bowl of water until he was done. As soon as he cleaned the front of her body, her began to search frantically for something to cover them with, finally finding some gauze in the hall bathroom upstairs.

After he covered the cuts, he gently rocked her onto her side and repeated the same procedure until she was cleaned and 'patched up' to the best of his ability. Laying a blanket over her and turning out the lights, he sat himself in the chair opposite her and kept vigil over his protector.

The next morning came slowly, too slowly, to an exhausted Harry. As Tonks finally woke near 10, Harry was intermittently falling in and out of sleep. "Harry," Harry heard a shaky and scratchy voice call softly. Immediately he was at Tonks' side.

"Are you ok, Tonks?" He asked, fearing the worst.

"Thirsty," she replied in the same voice, "could I have a little water."

………….

The next few days were spent in much the same manner; Harry spending nearly all his time at Tonks side helping her to regain her strength. Most of this time was filled with him getting her food and drinks. Not even two days after the attack, Tonks' wounds, mostly bruises and minor cuts were healed, and she threw both herself and Harry back into training – this time at full force.

The next few weeks passed in much the same manner as the first day back training; Tonks drove him hard, and for long hours. He had drastically improved in his skill and knowledge of curses, charms, and jinxes – his skill in dueling also improving greatly. Not only could he last much longer than when he first arrived, over 30 minutes, but he had actually won about 1 out of every 4 or 5 duels with Tonks, something he was quite content with.

Tonks had taught him several shield and blocking techniques, and had even mentioned that when she was on guard duty at Hogwarts (if she ever was), she could train him a little more, something which he quickly agreed to.

Before he knew it, it was August 28th and they were making their plans on when and where to return to in Britain.

"Where do you want to go to in Britain?" Tonks asked Harry as they were having dinner that evening. "I think we should leave tomorrow, just to be on the safe side."

Harry, having not really thought that much about it, replied with a slight trace of guilt, "I don't know." He offered – it was more of a question than a statement. "I just know I am not going to stay at Number 12 or Privet Drive," he added defiantly.

Tonks expected as much, so was not surprised. "What about Ron's house?" she ventured, though felt she already knew the answer.

"No, I am not going to put them in more danger than they already are."

"Well, there is always the Leaky Cauldron, but that could be a little dangerous." She added the last bit softly, knowing full well that Harry did not like people worrying about him. When he didn't reply or acknowledge her statement, she went on. "Let me think about it and see what I can come up with – but we are leaving tomorrow night, agreed?"

Harry nodded, and shortly after went to bed early, shortly followed by Tonks going to her room; both knowing that they would be flying all the following night.

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**_Thank you for the reviews, I appreciate them! New, longer chapter coming soon! Honest…_**

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